Attachment_A_SOW-Inbound.pdf

Attachment A

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

SCOPE OF WORK

Inbound Mail Operations Support

August 2014

PROCUREMENT SENSITIVE INFORMATION:

This document contains non-public information intended for use on a need-to-know basis within FEMA only.

Please protect this document as procurement sensitive and handle accordingly.

1. BACKGROUND

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a component of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, is authorized, pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. Chapter 68), to assist individuals and households following Presidentially-declared disasters and emergencies. In cooperation with state governments, FEMA provides assistance to disaster victims in accordance with the Act.

These programs receive extensive visibility from the highest levels of federal, state, and local governments and are continually reported on in the public media.

Disaster declarations and resulting assistance applications create a need to process large quantities of inbound applicant correspondence in a short timeframe. Privacy, accuracy, and timely delivery of services are required to ensure that the needs of the disaster applicant are met through the most expedient means possible.

FEMA has determined that contractor support services are the most efficient way to manage the inbound mail operations.

2. PURPOSE

This contract supports FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program (IHP) by providing readiness and surge resources for disaster applicants’ correspondence. This competition seeks to establish contractor mail operations with an adequate infrastructure and qualified, trained staff. The contractor operation shall be ready at the time of a disaster to begin accepting and processing inbound correspondence from disaster applicants in the designated geographical area(s) covered by each Presidential Declaration for Individual Assistance (IA) which is mailed to the FEMA facility in Hyattsville, Maryland.

The processing of inbound mail includes mail pickup or receipt, document preparation, translation of non-English correspondence into English, scanning, tracking, filing, preparation of documents for National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) temporary storage of archive prepped documents, and, if needed, splitting of a fax/eCorrespondence if more than one application is contained in the fax/eCorrespondence transmission.

Under the contract, the contractor shall maintain infrastructure, equipment, and system capabilities adequate to meet the performance requirements specified in this Scope of Work

(SOW).

3. SCOPE

Inbound applicant mail operations include pickup/receipt of all inbound mail from the United States Postal Service (USPS), UPS, DHL, FedEx, or other commercially provided correspondence and processing all mail in accordance with the service levels identified in this Scope of Work.

The contractor shall provide all management, personnel, services, supplies, equipment (except for Government Furnished Equipment described below), and facilities necessary to operate a comprehensive, inbound mail processing operation including the scanning, digitization, translation, uploading of data to FEMA and preparation for archival of FEMA applicant mail and fax/eCorrespondence image review in accordance with the requirements of this SOW.

The contractor shall be responsible for meeting Service Levels as identified in this SOW. Based on disaster activity, the rate of document arrival and workload volume will vary greatly. Holidays and weekends are considered regular calendar production days as required in order to ensure that Service Levels are met.

The contractor shall reference historical scenarios included in the solicitation for reference prior to bidding. The contractor shall address all three (3) scenarios in their proposal to demonstrate technical approach and understanding of the work to be performed.

The contractor shall perform phase-in activities that ensure their ability to assume full performance on or before the end of the phase-in period. The phase-in shall include actions to minimize disruption and start-up requirements. The phase-in actions shall consider recruiting, hiring, training, security requirements, and any other special considerations.

The contractor shall be required to be fully operational, including facilities, equipment, information technology, training, personnel and requisite supplies within ninety (90) calendar days from date of contract award. All contractor facilities and employees dedicated to FEMA contract obligations must be located within the continental United States (CONUS). Inbound correspondence from disaster applicants in geographical area(s) covered by each Presidential Declaration is mailed to the FEMA facility in Hyattsville, Maryland for pickup by the contractor.

Note: Phase-in activities and/or transition period is not applicable to incumbent contractor.

4. TYPE OF CONTRACT

The award will be an indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity contract with task orders issued on a firm-fixed price or cost reimbursable basis.

5. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

Period of Performance: Base period of one year, consisting of a three-month transition period, and a nine-month full operations period, with four consecutive one-year option periods, exercised at FEMA’s discretion.

Note: Phase-in activities and/or transition period shall not be applicable to the incumbent contractor.

6. CONTRACTOR REQUIREMENTS

The contractor shall:

Pickup/receive, at the Hyattsville, Maryland FEMA National Processing Service Center

(NPSC) or the U.S Post Office identified by the COR, all inbound applicant mail from a variety of public and private sources, including but not limited to USPS, UPS, DHL, FedEx, on a regular, recurring basis, Monday through Saturday (Sunday if required to meet Service Levels).

X-Ray all inbound letters, flats, parcels, and other material entering the mail operation system upon receipt at the facility using Computed Tomography (CT) X-ray detection equipment. The CT equipment shall presumptively classify scanned materials into a three-dimensional image for security assessment by the operators.

All inbound applicant mail documents are scanned except for those identified in Attachment A ”Job Guideline for Inbound Mail Special Handling”. Correspondence containing cash, checks, money orders, etc., is separated and handled in accordance with Attachment A.

Open mail and stamp with date and time of receipt.

Translate non-English correspondence to English, regardless of language, and scan the English translation and associated correspondence as one document.

Associate a document separator/identifier with each document/batch.

Import scanned documents into FEMA’s database using an import application approved by Cyber Security.

Import fax/eCorrespondence documents into FEMA’s database using an import application approved by FEMA Cyber Security.

Ensure scanned documents and imported faxes/eCorrespondence contain complete information for only one applicant (faxes/eCorrespondence containing information for more than one applicant shall be split into separate documents).

Ensure translations are true, accurate and formatted in accordance with Attachment E: “Job Guide for Translations”.

Ensure translated mail, faxes, and eCorrespondence include a copy of the translation and the original document.

Faxes/eCorrespondence will be available to the contractor via FEMA’s system of record and will not be faxed directly to the contractor. Ensure imported fax/eCorrespondence and mail images are legible, and with proper page orientation.

Ensure imported fax/eCorrespondence contain no blank or duplicate pages.

Provide copies of original documents not yet sent to the National Archive Records Center at the request of the COR in accordance with Attachment B. Copies should be identified as “Certified True Copy of Original Document # (enter doc ID#)”.

Re-scan identified documents at the FEMA COR’s or designee’s request.

Sort and file scanned documents and FEMA Form 90-69 B (Privacy Act Statement/Declaration of Citizenship), in accordance with Attachment B, “Job Guideline for Document Sorting, Filing and Archiving”. Completed/filed work six months of age or older will be scheduled for transition to the National Archives Records Center (NARC) in 3-month intervals by the COR or designee’s request.

Provide production reports as outlined in Section 9 of this SOW.

Maintain hours of operation sufficient for accomplishing all requirements and objectives of this SOW.

Disruptions or problems affecting the contractor’s ability to meet daily performance standards and any security issues including privacy breaches shall be reported by the contractor to the COR within 30 minutes of identification.

Maintain a capability to process a minimum monthly volume of 50,000 images of inbound mail. Surge conditions may require increased monthly production to process up to 1,250,000 images of inbound mail.

Maintain a capability to QC/review a minimum monthly volume of 100,000 fax/eCorrespondence images of inbound mail. Surge conditions may require increased monthly production of up to 1,700,000 inbound fax/eCorrespondence images.

Maintain a capability to process a minimum monthly translation volume of 400 inbound mail/fax/e-correspondence documents. Surge conditions may require increased monthly translation volume of up to 50,000 inbound mail/fax/eCorrespondence documents.

Process all mail that requires special handling. FEMA estimates the amount of mail requiring special handling to be approximately 1% of the inbound monthly mail documents.

Attachment A describes special handling procedures.

High Priority Processing – The contractor shall, from time to time, at the request of FEMA provide for high priority processing. High priority processing requires the contractor to accelerate the service level for prepping, scanning, importing documents and usage of a unique identifier for tracking purposes. FEMA will advise the contractor in writing, no less than one day (24 hrs) prior to the need, with the estimated number of documents and the expected timeframe that they will arrive for processing.

The contractor shall provide a Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) within 30 calendar days of award. This plan shall include procedures to ensure that operational support is available, without interruption, to support 50 percent of all capacity requirements. The plan shall also address the actions and timeframe required to regain 100 percent of the capacity requirements of the SOW. Finally, the plan shall include a complete description of the alternative mail operations site and, 1) a detailed breakdown of costs to maintain and operate the COOP site and, 2) a detailed breakdown of costs unexpended at the closed original facility. The COOP Plan must be approved by the COR.

7. PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

The contractor shall perform all requirements outlined in this SOW and achieve the performance standards for each function of the operation as described below:

Timeliness Pick up mail and stamp with date and time of receipt from designated location.

Correspondence (including returned mail) received Monday through Saturday (Sunday if required to meet Service Levels) is prepped, scanned and uploaded within 48 hours of contractor receipt.

Inbound fax/eCorrespondence are processed/uploaded within 48 hours of receipt by the contractor.

Requests for copies of original documents shall be processed within 24 hours of the time received by contractor.

Correspondence requiring special handling is sorted and processed within 48 hours of contractor receipt.

Correspondence requiring translation is translated, prepped, scanned and uploaded within 72 hours of contractor receipt. Date and time of Contractor’s original receipt of correspondence (mail/fax/eCorrespondence) begins the Service Level requirement.

Documents requiring rework/rescanning at the request of the COR shall be processed within 24 hours of contractor receipt.

Any Service Level may be temporarily extended by up to 48 hours with prior written approval from the COR.

Holidays and weekends are considered regular calendar production days in relation to Service Levels.

Quality

Batched documents are accurately marked with bar codes/batch identifiers (or in accordance with Government provided software) and identified 100 percent of the time.

The security of personally identifiable information is of the utmost importance to FEMA. Thus scanned documents and imported faxes will contain complete information for only one applicant, 100 percent of the time.

Translations are true and accurate 99 percent of the time (with a minimum score of 95%) in accordance with the Attachment E.

Translated mail, fax/eCorrespondence include copy of translation and original document 99 percent of the time.

Imported fax/eCorrespondence and mail images are legible, and with proper page orientation 99 percent of the time.

Imported fax/eCorrespondence contain no blank or duplicate pages 99 percent of the time.

Documents prepared for archiving will be boxed in accordance with Attachment B 99 percent of the time.

8. CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

8.1 Contractor Provided Resources

The contractor shall furnish all facilities, equipment (except for GFE), personnel, supplies (including file boxes that comply with NARA requirements), computers, communications, and other resources to achieve the requirements of this SOW.

The contractor shall provide a storage site that meets FEMA requirements, listed below, for temporary storage of federal records. When storing records temporarily, the Contractor must abide by the following guidelines:

Ensure the records are located away from known risks such as water, fire, mold, etc.

Do not place boxes directly on the floor; place on pallets or shelves.

Do not store records in direct sunlight.

Storage areas should be well ventilated and insulated. Avoid storage areas that are too hot.

Store records so that they can be identified, located and retrieved easily.

8.2 Staffing

The contractor shall perform all recruiting, screening, hiring, and monitoring of staff under this contract.

The contractor shall provide supervisory/management personnel and quality assurance personnel required for effective management of the work.

The contractor shall train employees on processes, procedures, and performance standards identified in this SOW and any attachments hereto.

The contractor shall ensure personnel have met HSPD- 12 and NIST Pub 201 requirements prior to the employees having any access to a DHS information system or FEMA applicant information. See Attachment G for details.

The contractor shall comply with applicable Department of Labor (DOL) wage determinations and provide FEMA CO with access to payroll records for required monitoring.

The contractor shall maintain an updated listing of all contractor personnel working under this contract and provide a copy to the COR upon staffing changes. This listing must include personnel information, including but not limited to the following: the person’s full legal name, Social Security number, home address, contact phone, date of hire, date(s) of training completion, dates and results of security clearance (s), date of separation, and reason for separation.

No later than two weeks prior to start of performance, the contractor shall provide to the COR a listing of all personnel who will require logistical access to FEMA's IT network for performance of work under this contract.

All contractor supervisors, managers, quality assurance personnel must speak, read, and write English fluently.

Contractor IT Personnel:

The contractor shall identify an on-site information technology (IT) system security officer responsible for ensuring client privacy and confidentiality.

The contractor shall identify two (minimum) contractor provided personnel as points of contact for FEMA IT. These personnel will be responsible for working with FEMA IT personnel to resolve technical issues causing service disruptions.

8.3 Quality Control Plan

Within 30 calendar days of award, the contractor shall submit two copies of the updated Quality Control Plan (QCP) to the COR (draft plan to be submitted with proposal). The QCP shall outline the contractor’s plan to ensure achievement of the performance standards of the SOW, as provided in Section 7 of this SOW. The QCP shall address identifying and correcting deficiencies, scheduled delivery of services, technical performance, and staff training. The COR will review and accept the QCP or return it for revision or implementation.

The contractor shall implement and maintain the COR approved QCP.

The contractor shall establish and maintain an inspection system that ensures compliance with the contractor’s QCP and maintain a local file of all QCP inspections. This file shall be available to the COR or designee at all times during the life of the contract.

Subsequent to award, any revisions to the QCP shall be submitted to the COR for review and approval.

8.4 Hardware, Software, Supplies and Data Services

The contractor shall:

Provide and maintain all necessary facilities, equipment, supplies and services to support document preparation, scanning, archiving, fax/eCorrespondence services and any other requirements under this SOW; e.g. NARA-approved archival boxes, document coversheets, office supplies, scanners, etc. (with the exception of FEMA provided GFE).

Provide and maintain security X-ray document scanning equipment necessary to ensure the appropriate protection of personnel, equipment, and facilities. See Attachment F, “Suspicious Mail or Packages”.

Provide workstation access for on-site FEMA representatives with the ability to access the Mail Management software during site visits. The contractor should estimate that FEMA representatives will make a minimum of 4 visits per year. The contractor shall provide workspace and telephones at the contractor’s provided site. Provide access to facsimile machines with send-and-receive capability, equipment to perform copying and printing, access to shipping and receiving, and standard office supplies for government administration of the contract.

Contractor shall submit proposed Cisco VPN concentrator specifications to FEMA IT security for approval. Provide a dedicated data connection exclusively for the purposes of achieving the requirements of this SOW, with a 5MB minimum with 20MB burst capability, 100MB recommended connection (physical interface capability for scanned data transmission). The scanning and importing functions require sufficient memory and bandwidth.

Provide FEMA network account requests in a CSV (comma-separated values) or XLS (Microsoft Excel spreadsheet) file with the following information in the specified column order: legal last name, legal first name, Social Security number (SSN), facility location, and security clearance. All fields must be provided before an account will be created. Account creation requests shall be submitted to COR or designated representative.

8.5 Compliance with Laws, Regulations and Manuals

The contractor shall be responsible for having a good working knowledge and technical understanding of the following laws, regulations and manuals pertaining to Official Mail and the DHS/FEMA Mail Management Program. Knowledge of laws, regulations and mail management procedures are necessary to operate a professional Mail Center for FEMA. Contractor personnel shall be trained in mail regulations and general mail management information.

Title 39, U.S.C., Sections 3202-3209 Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1719, "Franking Privilege"

Title 41 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Chapter 102, Part 102-192 Title 39 CFR, United States Postal Service, Chapter I, Sub-chapter E - Restrictions on

Private Carriage of Letters, Part 310 and 320 GSA Bulletin, FPMR B-65, Archives and Records, "Mail Preparation and Economy" USPS Domestic Mail Manual USPS International Mail Manual Annual USPS letter, "Payment of Official Mail"

DHS MD 4300A

Upon request, the contractor shall provide to the COR copies of mail management manuals and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) demonstrating the contractor’s adherence and understanding of the above guidance in performing the requirements and functions of this SOW.

The contractor shall maintain a clean and safe working environment in full compliance with applicable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.

9. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

9.1 Daily reports

The contractor shall provide daily reports to the COR by 9:00 a.m. EST Monday - Saturday unless otherwise approved in writing by the COR. Reporting content is as follows:

Inbound document (mail) count (including UPS, DHL, and other carrier package counts)

USPS

Priority/Certified Returned Mail Cumulative

Documents scanned Daily Cumulative Balance of inbound documents to be scanned

Images scanned Daily Cumulative

Documents released for import to FEMA Daily Cumulative Balance to be released to FEMA

Translated document count Daily Cumulative Documents to be translated

Number of fax/eCorrespondence images reviewed/removed/printed Daily Cumulative Balance left to be reviewed

Number of document copy requests processed

Daily Cumulative Balance left to be processed

Mail received containing cash and amount thereof Daily Cumulative

Mail received containing original legal documents

Images released for import to FEMA

Documents received for translation

Documents sent to other locations (i.e. SBA, Finance, etc.)

Cumulative

Number of archived boxes prepped for NARA

9.2 Weekly reports

The contractor shall provide to the COR weekly reports that contain all data in the daily reports and also include any quality control variances and issues.

9.3 Monthly Reports

The reporting period is the entire calendar month. Contractor monthly reports are due to the COR on the 1st day of the following month by noon ET, unless otherwise approved in writing by the COR. Report content is as follows:

Production Report Include all categories required in the daily reports, and, FEMA Form 9069-B/D documents received from inspectors (by disaster)

9.4 Ad Hoc reports

The contractor shall provide ad hoc reports (not more than 10 per month) at the request of the COR to track contractor and program performance.

10. FEMA’S RESPONSIBILITIES

FEMA’s designated COR will establish weekly meetings or conference calls with the contractor and/or its representatives to monitor performance and ensure specific work requirements are accomplished.

FEMA will perform periodic on-site quality/quantity checks with no prior notice to contractor.

These site visits will consist of personnel, physical and cyber security site surveys to ensure that the contractor is adhering to DHS/FEMA security requirements for handling and protecting sensitive information as well as programmatic service and quality reviews.

FEMA will monitor contractor operations to ensure physical access to FEMA servers and applicant information are restricted to authorized contractor personnel only.

FEMA will provide remote and onsite IT support, as required.

FEMA will provide a maximum of two subject matter experts to train contractor’s staff on use of FEMA’s software and special handling instructions for a period of up to three days. After this, the contractor shall be responsible for training mail center staff at its own expense.

11. GOVERNMENT-FURNISHED SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT

FEMA will provide IT security awareness training to the contractor.

FEMA will furnish the following equipment, systems, and provisions:

Computers for connectivity to FEMA networks until the contractor’s proposed and supplied hardware is approved by FEMA Cyber Security, Certification and Accreditation.

Data connections to the FEMA Wide Area Network – through the use of FEMA approved

VPN client installed on GFE.

Mail management software to load on scanner workstations until the contractor’s supplied software is approved by FEMA Cyber Security.

Any equipment provided for FEMA’s contract will be used exclusively by the contractor at the location(s) proposed for contract performance.

12. DEFINITIONS

90-69B – Privacy Act Statement/Declaration of Citizenship: Single-page government signature form used by FEMA to collect disaster applicants’ acknowledgment of the Privacy Act and their declaration of citizenship status. A sample of this form is provided in Attachment A

Ad Hoc Reports: Reports required when the situation makes it necessary or desirable, rather than being arranged in advance or being part of a general plan. Ad hoc does not mean correcting / clarifying data presented in routine reports.

Applicant Guide/brochure – Help After a Disaster: Guide to the Individuals and Households Program: A program guide providing information to help the readers understand FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program. A copy of this guide is sent to all individuals who register for disaster assistance.

Archiving: The process of filing and storing hard-copy documents submitted by disaster victims and field inspectors

COOP- Contingency of Operations Plan: A plan involving suitable backups, immediate actions and longer term measures for resuming production and responding to emergencies such as attacks, accidents, widespread employee illness in the workplace, or natural disasters.

Contingency plans are part of business resumption planning.

Document: A unique communication to include any supporting or amplifying information pertaining to a single applicant. May consist of one or more images.

Document Preparation: A prescribed process for preparing documents for subsequent mail handling; includes opening, sorting, and otherwise readying for subsequent handling within the mail operation.

Fax/eCorrespondence QC/Split: Quality check of inbound fax/eCorrespondence to ensure completeness and clarity of images as well as ensuring that only one applicant’s information is contained in a single file.

IHP – Individuals and Households Program: Program through which FEMA provides disaster assistance to individuals and households affected by a federally declared disaster. FEMA, under the authority of Section 408 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. §5174, and Title 44 of the Code of Federal Regulations, may provide financial assistance and, if necessary, direct services to eligible individuals and households who, as a direct result of a major disaster, have necessary expenses and serious needs and are unable to meet such expenses or needs through other means.

Image: One printed side of one page of paper.

NARA – National Archives and Records Administration: The government agency responsible for defining and administering the federal government’s records retention and management responsibilities.

NEMIS - National Emergency Management Information System: This FEMA-wide system of hardware, software, telecommunications, and applications provides the technology base for the collection and processing of information filed by individuals applying for federal disaster assistance.

NPSC – National Processing Service Center: FEMA currently has three NPSCs located in Virginia, Maryland and Texas. The NPSC is a centralized office established to consolidate the processing of disaster applications. Each NPSC represents a combination of caller services, casework processing, and administrative functions.

SBA – Small Business Administration: A federal agency that assists homeowners, renters, and businesses with disaster loan assistance.

Special Handling: Refers to documents that must be separated from the inbound mail processing operation. The documents listed below all require unique processing described in Attachment A. The Contractor must maintain an accountability log identifying counts and actions taken on each document type.

• Correspondence containing checks, money or valuables

• SBA loan packets

• Treasury questionnaires

• Forms 90-69 B (sent in by FEMA inspection contractors)

• Correspondence containing original legal documents, photos, videos, or other non-correspondence materials

• Non-English correspondence

• Priority Mail

• Returned Mail

• Cover Page providing specific Indexing instructions

Surge Operations: Occurs whenever the baseline operations’ quantities are exceeded.

13. ATTACHMENTS

A. Job Guideline for Inbound Mail Special Handling B. Job Guideline for Document Sorting, Filing & Archiving C. QC/Fax Split Instructions D. Mail Process Flow E. Job Guide for Translations F. Suspicious Package Handling G. Contractor Personnel Security Requirements H. Physical Security Requirements I. Cyber Security Requirements

Attachment A

Job Guideline for Inbound Mail Special Handling

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Instructional Guidance – Special Handling

A. Correspondence containing monetary value B. SBA loan packets C. Treasury questionnaires D. Form 90-69 B (Privacy Act Statement/Declaration of Citizenship) E. Correspondence containing original legal documents, photos, videos, and non-correspondence materials F. Non-English Correspondence G. Priority Mail H. Returned Mail I. Cover Page providing specific Indexing instructions

3. Forms

A-1 Disaster Business Loan Application A-2 Disaster Home Loan Application A-3 Treasury Questionnaire A-4 Form 90-69 B A-5 Sample Letter (returning Original Documents – see 2.E)

Disaster declarations create a need to process large quantities of inbound applicant correspondence in a short timeframe. Privacy, accuracy, and timely delivery of service are all required to ensure the needs of the disaster applicant are met through the most expedient means possible.

Processing of inbound mail includes, but is not limited to, receipt of USPS, UPS, DHL, FedEx, or other commercially provided correspondence; testing of inbound correspondence for security purposes;

prepping documents for scanning; translating non-English documents into English; scanning; preparing documents for archive at the National Records Center; and reviewing inbound faxes in a timely and quality manner.

The timeliness standard requires that mail be stamped with the date and time of receipt and exported to a FEMA specified location within 48 hours of receipt.

This document identifies expectations and provides guidance for processing of inbound USPS, UPS, DHL, FedEx, or other commercially delivered or provided correspondence.

2. Instructional Guidance – Special Handling

Once the mail has been x-rayed, it is ready to be opened, prepped, and sorted. Certain documents require special handling and are to be separated from the main-stream operation. The contractor is expected to maintain an accountability log identifying counts and actions taken, including if they were scanned or not scanned, for the document types identified below; these documents are:

Non-scanned items:

A) Correspondence containing checks, money or valuables.

B) SBA loan packets C) Treasury questionnaires D) Forms 90-69 B (sent in by FEMA inspection contractors) E) Correspondence containing original legal documents, photos, videos, or other non-correspondence materials

Scanned Items:

F) Non-English Correspondence G) Priority Mail H) Returned Mail I) Cover Page Providing Specific Indexing Instructions

Items A) through I) are described below:

A) Correspondence containing monetary value All documents containing monetary values, such as: cash, checks, money orders, etc., must be accounted for and should be recorded in an accountability log. These documents with the monetary content should be mailed to the address below daily. A copy of the log identifying the documents being sent should be included with the mailing. These documents are not scanned. The mailing address is:

FEMA - Maryland NPSC Attn: Mail Operations 6511 America Blvd Hyattsville, MD 20782

B) SBA loan packets

From time-to-time, applicants accidentally send their SBA loan packet to FEMA. These packets should be forwarded to the SBA processing office no less than once per week.

An example of these loan packets can be viewed below. SBA loan packets are not scanned into an applicant’s file. Loan packets sent to SBA must be accounted for and should be recorded in a daily log. Only SBA applications are to be sent to SBA, all other documents are to be scanned.

The mailing address for the SBA loan processing office is:

Small Business Administration 14925 Kingsport Rd Fort Worth, TX 76155-2243

C) Treasury Questionnaires

Treasury questionnaires are forms sent by the Treasury Department with questions relating to the receipt of an assistance check. Treasury Questionnaires may be received from two different sources: Applicants and FEMA Disaster Finance. Close attention should be paid to the sender’s name.

From Disaster Finance: These forms have been processed by Disaster Finance and are forwarded to FEMA/Mailroom for scanning only.

From Applicants: Though instructions tell the recipient to return these forms directly to Treasury, on occasion applicants send these forms with original signatures to FEMA.

The contractor is to maintain a daily log of Treasury forms received and sent to address below. Forms received from applicants are not scanned into the applicant’s file; they should be forwarded to:

FEMA Disaster Finance Center P. O. Box 129 Mt Weather, VA 22611-0129

D) Form 90-69 B Declaration and Release (sent in by Housing Inspection contractors) FEMA Housing Inspection contractors are required to obtain the applicant’s signature on FEMA Form 90-69 B. The Housing Inspection contractors usually wait until their task order is complete before sending them to FEMA for archiving. (Please Note: the Housing Inspection contractors are not the only submitters of these forms, other submitters include the applicant and Disaster Field Offices.). Form 90-69 B submitted by the Housing Inspection contractors is NOT scanned into the applicant’s file; close attention should be paid to the sender’s name and address; forms submitted by the Housing Inspection contractors typically arrive in bulk. The COR will work with the contractor to ensure that he has the current names of the FEMA Housing Inspection contractors.

(Forms 90-69 B from sources other than Housing Inspection contractors should be scanned with the daily mail. Forms 90-69 B from Housing Inspection contractors should be filed in accordance with guidance provided in Attachment B entitled “Job Guideline for Document Sorting, Filing, and Archiving”).

E) Correspondence containing original legal documents, photos, videos, or other non-correspondence materials In an attempt to ensure FEMA receives the necessary documentation to process a case, applicants occasionally submit original legal documents, photos, videos, etc. All original legal documents such as driver’s license, social security cards, birth certificates, death certificates, etc must be copied; the originals should be returned to the sender. The contractor will be provided a copy of a generic form letter (See Sample Letter) to be used when returning documents/items to the sender. A copy of the completed form should be placed with the correspondence submitted by the sender. Once the form has been added to the correspondence the mail packet should be scanned and filed with other regular inbound mail. Photos, videos, DVD’s and other electronic media items will not be scanned; however, a notice will be attached to the correspondence indicating that photos, videos, DVD were received but not scanned.

F) Non-English Correspondence

FEMA is expected to process correspondence from a diverse general public. At times this necessitates the translation of non-English correspondence into English. Once translated, the original correspondence with translation should be prepped and scanned with the regular daily mail.

G) Priority Mail Both the applicant and FEMA field offices send correspondence through commercial priority mail services. Often, correspondence from FEMA field offices contains documents pertaining to more than one applicant. In this situation, a copy of the outside of the envelope must be made for each individual’s document(s); documents should be scanned as individual packets of inbound mail. Priority mail should be batched separately from mainstream mail and scanned using a designated batch series as identified by the COR.

H) Returned Mail

Following disasters, individuals may not have a long-term mailing address. Sometimes, the mailing address on file with FEMA is no longer valid or the postal service cannot deliver to the designated area. There are typically two types of return mail: general correspondence and the applicant registration packet.

a) General Correspondence Returned Mail documents should be prepped the same as regular daily correspondence but should be batched separately using a designated batch series to be identified by the COR. Correspondence may be returned because the postal service could not read the name and/or the address of the recipient may have changed. When doc prepping returned mail, the following should be included:

cover page (if available), front of first page letter mailed to applicant (that shows date of letter - must be included), and envelope (taped or copied - must be included). Other documents found in envelope such as 9069A, 9069B, RFI forms, etc. can be shredded / destroyed.

b) Applicant Registration Packets

These packets are mailed in 9 ½ X 12 ½ envelopes and contain copies of the applicant’s registration, program information, and FEMA’s Applicant Guide.

Returned applicant registration packets are scanned into the applicant’s file. The following documents are doc prepped and scanned: cover page, complete copy of 9069CL letter, envelope (taped or copied). Other documents found in envelope such as 9069A, Referrals, 9069B can be shredded. The Applicant Guide is to be removed and saved for re-use by FEMA.

I) Cover Page Providing Specific Indexing Instructions From time to time applicant documents are received from FEMA field offices requiring specific indexing instructions. Typically these documents, pertaining to more than one applicant, arrive in bulk with a cover page providing specific indexing instructions. In this situation, the contractor will copy the cover page for each individual document(s) and scan as individual packets of inbound mail.

A-1: Disaster Business Loan Application

A-2: Disaster Home Loan Application

A-3: Treasury Questionnaire

PART 1 CLAIM AGAINST THE UNITED STATES FOR THE OMB No. 1510-0019 PROCEEDS OF A GOVERNMENT CHECK Exp. 7/3/94

WARNING: Title 18, Sec, 287, U.S. Code: “Whoever makes or presents to any person or officer in the civil, military, or naval service, of the United States, or to any department or agency thereof, any claim upon or against the United States, or to any department or agency thereof, knowing such claim to be false, fictitious, or fraudulent, shall be fined not more than $10,000 or Imprisoned not more than five years, or both”

1. Did you receive this check?

2. Did you sign your name on this check?

3. Did you cash this check?

4. Did you deposit this check in a bank, credit union other financial organization? Did someone else deposit this check to an account that you could use?

5. Was this check cashed with your permission?

6. Did you receive any money or benefit in any way from this check (e.g. household expenses, child support, etc.)? If so, explain. (include amount if known.)

SIGN Payee’s Signature 2nd Payee’s Signature (If check drawn to two payees)

HERE

7. If your present name is different from that on the face of the check, explain why.

Signature of Witness (ONLY If Payee(s) Signed by Mark)

8. If you are making claim for this check and it is not made out to you, state your relationship to the payee. Explain why the payee cannot sign.

Your assigned I.D. No 2nd Payee’s assigned I.D.

(SSA, VA, IRS, Etc.) No. (SSA, VA, IRS, Etc.)

THIS CLAIM IS MADE FOR THE PROCEEDS OF THE ABOVE CHECK. IF YOU CASH BOTH THE ORIGINAL AND ANY SETTLEMENT CHECKS, THE OVERPAYMENT MUST BE PROMPTLY REFUNDED. FAILURE TO DO SO COULD RESULT IN LEGAL ACTION. BE SURE TO INCLUDE THE ABOVE CHECK AND SYMBOL NUMBERS WITH YOUR REFUND.

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

FMS 1133 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SERVICE

Your Social Security Account Number and the other information are being requested in order that the Department of the Treasury can process your claim for a government check. The authority to consider your claim is found in part, at 31 United States Code, Section 528 and 561-564. If you cannot or will not furnish the information the processing of your claim may be delayed. The estimated average burden associated with this collection of information is 10 minutes per respondent or record keeper, depending on individual circumstances. Comments concerning the accuracy of this burden estimate and suggestion for reducing this burden should be directed to the Financial Management Services Facilities Management Division, Property and Supply Section Ardmore, East Business Center 336-L1 75th Avenue.

Landover, MD. 20785 or the office of Management and Budget Paperwork Reduction Project (1510-0019) Washington, D.C.20503.

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

FMS 1133 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SERVICE

A-4: FEMA form 90-69B

A-5: Sample Form Letter

Date: ______________________ FEMA Application No.________________ Disaster: ____________________

We are returning the original documents you submitted to the Federal Emergency Management Agency

(FEMA) to process your application for disaster assistance. A copy has been retained in your file.

ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS:

Insurance Policy Social Security Card

Deed Birth Certificate

90-69 (Application) Marriage Certificate

Original Receipts Other

If you have any questions, please call the FEMA Disaster Helpline at (800) 621-3362 or

(800) 462-7585 for the speech and hearing impaired.

Mail Operations Section Federal Emergency Management Agency

Attachment B

Job Guideline for Document Sorting, Filing & Archiving

Content:

2. Instructional Guidance

A. Completed scanned documents B. Sorting and filing of 90-69 B forms from FEMA inspectors C. Document Requests D. Preparing boxes for archiving E. Transition of archived documents to National Records Center

Example B-1 Example of Properly Stacked Pallets

1. Introduction:

The Federal Records Act of 1950, as amended (44 U.S.C. §3301), defines records in part as "all books, papers, maps, photographs, machine readable materials or other documentary materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by an agency of the United States Government under Federal law or in connection with the transaction of public business and preserved or appropriate for preservation by that agency or its legitimate successor as evidence of the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the Government or because of the informational value of data contained in them." The Freedom of Information Act, at 5 U.S.C. 552(f) (2), clarifies that the term "agency record" includes information stored on computer as well as traditional paper documents.

Under FEMA Manual 5400.2, Records Management, FEMA is required to retain all correspondence relating to the distribution or denial of Individuals and Households Program assistance. FEMA records are classified as N1-311-86-1 by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). These records are typically retained for 6-months before consideration of retirement to a Federal Records Center (FRC).

Because retired records are subject to recall and reuse, effective controls must be maintained over records regardless of whether or not they are retired to a Federal Records Center (FRC). The Manual provides instructions on the proper sorting and filling of applicant correspondence and FEMA Form 90-69 B.

2. Instructional Guidance:

A. Completed scanned documents

Once scanned documents have been uploaded to FEMA, they are ready to be filed. Filed documents should be arranged in chronological sequence by batch number, with the smallest to the front of the box. The box number sequence and content description should be displayed on the end of the box.

Example: Box # Description

3/50 HQ Temporary Housing Assistance Program Master Occupant / Applicant Files for multiple disasters Batch # 52000424 – 52000436

B. Sorting and filing of FEMA Form 90-69 B from FEMA Housing Inspection contractors

FEMA Housing Inspection contractors are required to obtain an applicant’s signature on each FEMA Form 90-69 B. Once completed, the forms are sent to FEMA for archiving. The completed forms typically arrive in large bundles sorted only by disaster number. (Please Note:

the inspection contractor is not the only one who submits these forms, others include the applicant and Disaster Field Offices.) Only the Form 90-69 B submitted by the contract inspectors is NOT scanned into the applicant’s file; close attention should be paid to the sender’s name and address. FEMA will provide Housing Inspection contractors’ names to ensure they can be distinguished from other sources. 90-69 B forms are typically retained for 1-year before consideration of retirement to a Federal Records Center (FRC).

Forms 90-69 B received from FEMA’s Housing Inspection contractors should be filed by 1) Disaster Number (DR), 2) Inspector ID#, and then 3) FEMA Registration ID#. Disaster Numbers should not be combined; each disaster should be boxed separately.

Boxes typically hold about 1800 Forms 90-69 B. The box number and content description should be displayed on the end of each box.

Example: Box # Description

2/50 HQ Temporary Housing Assistance Program Master Occupant / Applicant Files for multiple disasters DR 1600 Inspector ID # 42410101 – 53279243

REG ID # 91-1010101 – 92-0007861

Or DR 1600 Inspector ID # 42410101

REG ID # 91-1010101 – 92-0007861

C. Document Requests

Prior to documents being retired to the Federal Records Center (FRC), it may be necessary for FEMA to provide original or certified copies of original documents to a requesting party. All requests to the contractor for original or certified copies of documents will come from the COR or their designated representative.

1.) Requests for Certified Copies of original

When FEMA requests a certified copy of an original document, the copy should be stamped “Certified to be a True Copy of the Original”; the original document should be returned to the file and only the certified copy sent to the Requesting Party. Requests may include correspondence and 90-69B.

2.) Requests for Original Documents

When FEMA requests an original document, a copy must be made for the file. The copy of the document(s) should be stamped “Certified to be a True Copy of the Original”. The certified copy of the document(s) should be placed in the file to replace the original; the original documents should be sent to the requesting party.

D. Preparing boxes for archiving

Prior to boxes being sent to the Federal Records Center for archiving, they should be reviewed for accuracy and completeness ensuring identified contents are complete. Blank or duplicate pages, pins, pencils, paper clips, and other non-file materials should be removed from the boxes as they can damage the paper.

E. Shipping Records

The COR or their designated representative will contact the contractor to request a listing of the boxes ready for archiving and their contents. Records eligible for retirement to an FRC require the completion of a Standard Form (SF) 135 by the COR or their designee. This form serves to record the transfer of files to an FRC, providing an inventory sufficiently detailed to assist in the reference, retrieval, and ultimate disposition of FEMA records. A copy of the completed, approved SF135 should be placed inside each box being transferred to the FRC.

Transferring records to a records center should be accomplished as soon as possible after FEMA has received the annotated copies of the SF135. The COR or their designee will coordinate with FRC and the contractor to arrange for shipment of the boxes.

A copy of the completed SF135 should be placed in a brown envelope and taped to the top of the first box in the series of boxes going to the FRC. “SF135” should be printed in bold letters across the top of the envelope.

Boxes must be stacked for shipment in compliance with FRC guidelines.

1. Face the boxes as shown in the attached illustration: “Example of Properly Stacked Pallet”.

2. Stacking pattern for palletized records is 10 standard records center cartons per row, 5 rows per pallet, 50 cartons per pallet. Box 50 is in the bottom row, and box 1 is in the top row.

3. Four boxes on each row are placed perpendicular to the rest of the boxes in that row.

4. Numbered end not facing the front of the pallet should face right.

5. When records are boxed before pallets are available, keep the boxes in a numerical order so they can be loaded on pallets properly.

6. Failure to load pallets properly will be cause for the Center to refuse the records.

7. Pallets should be banded with steel, plastic, or cord strapping before shipping.

B-1: Example of Property Stacked Pallet

ATTACHMENT C

FAX SPLITTER INSTRUCTIONS

Fax Splitter is the software utility that ensures the fax transmissions received are complete and that each transmission is a complete document prior to import into FEMA’s database. The fax splitter operator goes into the fax splitter application and divides the images allowing the operator to see each individual image on the screen and for any necessary manipulation prior to import. Additionally, this ensures faxes contain complete information for only one applicant and no blank or duplicate images are imported.

Instructional Guidance

Once Fax Splitter application is activated, allow time for configurations to take place and the Log In screen will appear. Insert your Username and Password to Log In. To exit the Log In screen, click Exit.

The Index Module (1) is now activated. Click the Run Single Batch (2) button.

Ensure the Miscellaneous Settings (3), Scale to Gray, Apply Settings to all Pages, and Show Indexing Zones (4) boxes are check marked.

(1)

(4)

(3)

(2)

The Open InputAccel Batch window shown below opens. The Name section (1) lists all the available faxes ordered by…